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Cheers to the weekend and cheers to the book I haven't read yet: It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, Gender and Sexual Health by Robie E. Harris and Michel Emberley.
As a mom of a 6th grade girl, I'm in the trenches. My kid is SO private that I've hardly seen her body since she started developing breasts. She got her first period around the end of March, and she didn't tell me until AUGUST. She cried when she told me because she knew my feelings would be hurt, and she felt bad for "lying."
Other than, in fact, having feelings that WERE hurt, I provided her with all the grace in the world. It's her body - she has a right to privacy, even with me. When she wanted me to teach her to shave her legs, we did so with her clothing on, pants rolled up and legs over the side of the tub.
Kids aren't always comfortable discussing puberty with their parents. I wasn't either. It's okay.
Important resources are out there - and they aren't all healthy. I recently learned about this freaky conservative society that believes Sex Education in schools leads to more homosexuals -- laughable, if that thought wasn't so offensive and scary.
I still remember sex education - boys and girls were separated. It was the early 90's, and my favorite 5th grade teacher Ms. Skinner taught us to feel comfortable saying PENIS PENIS PENIS/ VAGINA VAGINA VAGINA. And if any of the boys acted a fool after we re-integrated, we were instructed to look at them and say, in a sing-song voice, "I'm imma-ture, I'm imma-ture."
(Because lord knows, they were immature.)
Should You (or your kids) read It's Perfecctly Normal? I would argue, absolutely. When they are ready, which is the moment they express interest, but honestly, my thoughts are that kids need the instruction as soon as they become fertile or are around girls who are fertile. Particularly with Roe being overturned. Even in the 1990's, I recall from middle school Sex Ex our health teaching warning, YOU CAN GET PREGNANT BEFORE YOU GET YOUR FIRST PERIOD. You might be ovulating and getting ready to start. Thankfully for me, I had already started my period by that time and hadn't yet considered kissing, much less sex. Still, it gave me pause, because it wasn't something I'd considered before. But, I digress, which I usually do.
So, now for some additional context around This Controversial Book
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| Clutch those pearls a little tighter, Linsdey |
The newly-elected State Senator from my district (and the bane of my existence) pretty much ran on a platform of this book being pornography. She was running unopposed, so she didn't even need to go there. However her interests lie in promoting her White Christian agenda (and those of the Trumper-backers) at my -- and her -- local school board. In addition, she has spoken at school boards about 1) Trans kids in bathrooms 2) Mask choice and 3) CRT and 4) supporting the local police.
Ya know. All the things.
And PS her name is Lindsey Sublett Tichenor. She's easy to find on Facebook - so please let her know she sucks, as she has already blocked me. I peek in on her posts using my business page, and copy and paste as needed to share her nonsense and inform my friends and followers. It brings me much joy and many hits to my serotonin levels.
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